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Wednesday, December 11, 2013

The Passion Blazes...

This time last year, I was in the middle of blog hop this, 99cent sale that, holiday giveaway there and "Please buy my book!" everywhere. I was tweeting, blogging, Facebooking and Pinterest-ing.

I was in promo hog heaven trying to tell the world about my upper YA paranormal, Neverlove, trying to understand why it didn't take off and get two thumbs up by every reader or why I couldn't seem to get enough reviews for it. Why couldn't it get traction? Could it possibly be that a person of color on the cover is a detriment, immediately linking readers to expect an urban street tale and not a tale of painful loss, twisted love, and redemption mixed with paranormal elements? Maybe the writing truly just sucks...royally?

Lots of questions and doubts while I tried to push my first YA novel as a self-published author.

A year later, I've learned how much I love the cover and whether it is a detriment or not, I like it as is, though I may consider updating it so that it matches They All Fall Down. But that's just a thought. Other doubts still plague me, especially when I have moments where I slip into the dangerous "Comparison" zone *cue Twilight Zone's eerie music* Over the year, the comparisons have grown fewer and farther between, but in my humanity, I know I'll still have them.

A year later, I'm glad that one thing hasn't changed. Though doubts have tried to take it away, non-existent sales have attempted to discourage it...that writing passion still blazes. I have an MG story I'm still intrigued with updating with feedback I recently received. Despite agent rejections, I'm still interested in seeking an agent for it or maybe seeing if there is a small publisher that may want to give it a home. And if I don't do those things, I still have self-publishing as a wonderful avenue. I have some more adult-content stories ready to be shared. I still have other sci-fi/urban fantasy/paranormal/fantasy stories that won't stop nagging at me to be shared.

For this, I am grateful.

For this, I'm wonderfully blessed to indulge in this passion.

For this, I'm glad to have all of you around to share in this, my journey as an author and...a dreamer

26 comments:

This writing gig is like being a merry-go-round, isn't it. The ups and downs are enough to make us neurotic. There are so many books calling for our attention so it's hard to focus on anything for long. Case in point, I've been meaning to get your new book, but haven't done so yet.

I have some of the same insecurities in finding the right audience, since so many seem to be into 'street lit', so I wonder if there's space for a love story or MG or whatever. Ever so often though, like today. I hear from a reader who's just waiting for me to drop something else.

Things like that keep me motivated as well as the enjoyment I get from making up stories. We are indeed privileged to have the freedom to do what makes us happy.

Not every book is going to take off and be successful. Hey, my first book sold so poorly that the new editor who replaced the one that acquired me told me over the phone that it would be difficult to publish anything else I wrote with a sales record like that for the first one. Talk about something that crushed my spirit!

But too bad for her, because I did sell future books -- and that first one was turned into a short film, so it had its own little heydey. You just have to keep writing and writing and writing more books. No one can take that first book away from you, and it will still be around when you publish future books and people want to read more of what you wrote!

I think it's social media that gives us a warped view of success. You read about this book or that author making it big, and we get caught up in the hoopla. But it's really just a blip on the radar. What's happened to those books or authors since then? Not everyone turns into a megastar, and those few are a teeny-tiny fraction of the overall published population.

When I realized the bigger picture, I stopped worrying about it. We're in a different universe from the publishing of the 1980s. Each book is like a tv set with millions of channels. The key is finding your real audience. They're out there.

Your book is fantastic so don't doubt yourself for a moment! It's all about recognition and getting enough people to realize your book is fabulous and available. I'm so glad the difficulties with marketing haven't deterred you because i LOVE your writing! If you haven't tried BookBub for promotions, I highly recommend them.

Now that I've indulged myself in being able to write, to share and to improve on my craft, I don't think I'd want to stop writing. I have my doubts, but I sooooo love to write. So yes, we'll keep supporting each other!!

This business wasn't what I expected it to be. Before I was published, I was thrilled about the whole process, and after experiencing some pitfalls, I'm more reserved and I keep my hopes moderate, although I still believe that through hard work and several books being out that I'll have more and more sales.

I hear you about those expectations. As much as I tried to be "real" about what to expect, I just don't think I could ever have prepared myself for the real thing lol!! But I'm glad you keep going. And keep listening to those characters :-)

I love writing. I know it sounds simple but I do and always will. Novels of colour do often have a tough time selling sometimes, it's a sad reality. Never back down and I'm glad the passion still blazes. My third novella in The Sacrifice Series is filled with characters of colour and set in my home country Jamaica. No matter what happens I'll never change that and would find making them another race just for money a disgrace to writing in general and personally. Best of luck with your MG title and all your books whether self-pub or otherwise.

It's only right to be true to the story, the characters and the tale as is. Makes it something to be very proud of. Neverlove may not be a known story and sales are #($&)(#$, but man am I proud of that story and will stand by it :-)